Timo Meier scored twice in the second period to help the Sharks earn a 6-3 win over the St. Louis Blues in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final

Share this:

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Timo Meier (28) scores a goal against St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (50) in the second period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Timo Meier (28) celebrates scoring a goal in the second period against the St. Louis Blues in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group)

Sound

The gallery will resume inseconds

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Timo Meier (28) pushes in for a goal against St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (50) past Colton Parayko (55) in the second period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Timo Meier (28) breaks away to score a goal against the St. Louis Blues in the second period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Evander Kane (9) fights for the puck against St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (50) in the second period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Timo Meier (28) scores a goal against St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (50) in the second period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Timo Meier (28) takes a shot against the St. Louis Blues in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Erik Karlsson (65) clears the puck against St. Louis Blues' Tyler Bozak (21) as Sharks goaltender Martin Jones (31) looks on in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Tomas Hertl (48) crashes into the goal past St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (50) in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Joonas Donskoi (27) controls the puck against St. Louis Blues' Tyler Bozak (21) in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Joe Pavelski (8) celebrates a goal against the St. Louis Blues in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: St. Louis Blues' Joel Edmundson (6) celebrates a goal against San Jose Sharks' goaltender Martin Jones (31) and Marc-Edouard Vlasic (44) in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: A shot by San Jose Sharks' Logan Couture (39) gets past St. Louis Blues' goaltender Jordan Binnington (50) for a goal in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Gustav Nyquist (14) passes the puck past St. Louis Blues' Joel Edmundson (6) to teammate Logan Couture (39) in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Anda Chu/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Gustav Nyquist (14) passes the puck to San Jose Sharks' Logan Couture (39) for a goal against the St. Louis Blues in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Marcus Sorensen (20) takes a shot against St. Louis Blues' Vince Dunn (29) in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Logan Couture (39) celebrates his goal against the St. Louis Blues in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Joe Thornton (19) fights for the puck against St. Louis Blues' Alex Pietrangelo (27) in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Joe Pavelski (8) scores a goal against St. Louis Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington (50) in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE, CA - May 11: San Jose Sharks' Joe Thornton (19) fights for the puck against St. Louis Blues' Ryan O'Reilly (90) in the first period in Game 1 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Western Conference finals at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., on Saturday, May 11, 2019. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)

SAN JOSE — Remember the hits, animosity and general bad blood the Sharks had in their first round series in these playoffs?

Well, it’s all back, and it seems to suit the Sharks just fine.

Kevin Labanc snapped a six-game goal drought and Timo Meier scored his fourth and fifth of the playoffs in the second period to help the Sharks earn a 6-3 win over the St. Louis Blues on Saturday in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final at SAP Center. Game 2 is Monday in San Jose at 6 p.m.

Meier also added an assist on the first of Logan Couture’s two goals, and Martin Jones finished with 28 saves as the Sharks took the first game of a playoff series for the third straight round. They also beat the Vegas Golden Knights in a bruising first round and the Colorado Avalanche — in a less hostile second round — by identical 5-2 scores.

“They’re a big team. They like to play physical, and that’s how it’s going to be,” said Gus Nyquist, who had two assists for the third time in six games. “We’ve been through it. Probably not against Colorado as much, but Vegas was a pretty physical series that we handled well. Just got to keep going.”

The Sharks led 2-1 after the first period before Labanc and Blues center Ryan O’Reilly traded goals 1:17 part in the second. O’Reilly’s goal, at the 8:58 mark of the second, cut the Sharks lead to 3-2.

Then Meier took over.

He took a pass from Couture inside the St. Louis blue line, slipped the puck under the stick of a flat-footed Jay Bouwmeester, skated around him, then went forehand-to-backhand in close on Jordan Binnington, tapping the puck past his left pad for a 4-2 Sharks lead at the 10:24 mark.

“That goal wouldn’t happen if that play wasn’t made by Logan,” Meier said. “I had some speed, the defenseman was flat-footed, so I just got it past him and I knew coming in on the goalie, I knew I had to make a move and cut back. It worked out.”

Then with 2:26 left in the second, Meier, slightly behind the goal line to the left of the St. Louis net, picked up the loose puck after a shot from Marc-Edouard Vlasic and put it off Blues defenseman Vince Dunn and put it past Binnington.

Labanc’s goal was his first, and the first for his line with Marcus Sorensen and Joe Thornton, since Game 1 against the Avalanche on April 26. That goal was also a game-winner.

It also came after a neutral zone turnover by the Blues, one of three Sharks goals that came shortly after St. Louis giveaways.

“We wanted to create as many turnovers as we could in all three zones and I think we did a good job of that,” Labanc said. “At the same time, we weren’t giving up as many turnovers and we were doing our job, managing the puck well, taking away their speed and not giving them much in our own end.”

The Sharks knew this would be a much more physical series than the one they just completed against the Avalanche, and the tone was set early.

Officially, the two teams combined for 35 hits in the first 20 minutes, with the Blues being credited with 22. But it was the Sharks who had a 2-1 lead after the first period.

“We expected that. They’re a big, physical team and that’s the style we like to play, too,” Sharks defenseman Brenden Dillon said. “We expected kind of a mirror image. It just kind of came down to who was able to execute and play their system the best.”

Couture opened the scoring at the 3:31 mark of the first, as he took a pass from Nyquist on a 2-on-1 and scored on a nearly open net for his league-leading 10th of the playoffs. The play was set up by Meier, who barreled over Alex Pietrangelo to free the puck before Nyquist picked it up and began the odd man rush.

The Blues got that goal back at the 9:13 mark, as Jaden Schwartz’s shot from the faceoff circle to the right of the Sharks net was tipped by Joel Edmundson past Jones. Just second before, Schwartz made contact with Couture, who had a partial breakaway before he went hard into the end boards feet first.

No penalty was called on that play, but the Blues were called for interference and slashing in a span of 51 seconds to set up a Sharks 5-on-3.

The Sharks capitalized, as Burns found Pavelski near the side of the Blues net. Pavelski’s first two tries were stopped by goalie Jordan Binnington, but he batted the third try into the net for his fourth goal of the playoffs at the 11:24 mark.

The Sharks were just 2-for-20 with the man advantage against the Avalanche and the Blues were one of the least penalized teams in the second round of the playoffs. But the Sharks had three power play tries in the first 25 minutes of Saturday’s game.

“We’re going to play whistle-to-whistle the whole series, and if they want to take penalties like that, or penalties like at the end of the game, then we’ll let the refs take care of that,” Sharks coach Pete DeBoer said. “They told us they will and we’re expecting they will.”

Curtis Pashelka is the San Jose Sharks reporter for the Bay Area News Group. Prior to covering the Sharks, Curtis served as the high school sports editor for the East Bay. He also worked as a general assignment reporter covering motorsports, golf and college basketball, and as a backup writer on the A's, Giants and Warriors. He started at the organization in 2000 and spent close to eight years covering high school sports.